New York Penn League Baseball Notes: Plenty of Baseball left to played

With the Fourth of July holiday over with, it means that a 1/4 of the New York Penn League season has been played. There is one team that has, to this point, proven to be just a bit better than everyone else. That would be the Lowell Spinners currently sitting with the best record in the league at 16-5. But that’s the beauty of a league with call-ups and draft picks being signed. Rosters can and do change, sometimes for the better, and sometimes for the worst.

The Vermont Lake Monsters pitching staff has been getting a lot of swings and misses so far this year. Heading into the week just finished, the staff was leading the league with 166 strikeouts in 145 innings pitched (10.30 per 9 IP). In their first 16 games played, Vermont pitchers recorded nine or more punchouts in twelve of those games. While it’s a small sample size, it has been a bit of a tough start for Lake Monster SS Logan Davidson. The Oakland A’s number one pick has appeared in four games going 1-13. He has faced some pretty tough pitching so far and still needs some time to adjust.

The Staten Island Yankees arrived at the holiday with a run differential of +35 which is near the top of the league. They also find themselves in a dog fight with Brooklyn for the division lead. Their offense is being led by a couple of everyday players, outfielders Jacob Sanford (11-for-34, .361) and Isaiah Pasteur (10-for-32,.463). Meanwhile, their bullpen has a couple of guys with two saves each, Keegan Curtis and Daniel Ramos.

The Spinners just finished a perfect homestand (5-0) and head out on the road with a six-game win streak and the best record in the league. The win streak was snapped on Sunday by Aberdeen, but at 16-5 things are still looking very good for Lowell. They have scored nearly 100 runs so far this season and may, in fact, have a chance to get even better. Stephen Scott, the tenth round pick by the Boston Red Sox who helped Vanderbilt to a College World Series championship, has been cleared to play for the Spinners. That word came down over the holiday Scott is with the team and now is just waiting for his turn to play.

Still, as good a story has the Spinners have been, maybe the best news as the league reaches the quarter mark is in Batavia. The Muckdogs, who have struggled to wins games and fans, are off to a 13-8 start and lead their division to date.

It’s still early, but good things seem to be happening in upstate New York. Let’s see if it lasts through the summer.

Next week, we will be back with more news from the New York Penn League.